Grexit would be 'beginning of the end' for Europe, warns EU chief

A disorderly Greek exit from the eurozone would mark "beginning of the end" for the currency union and spark a dangerous domino effect of market contagion across the continent, according to the EU's top finance commissioner.

Seeking to soothe talk of an "accidental" Grexit, Pierre Moscovici said any move to eject Greece from the bloc "would be a catastrophe - for the Greek economy, but also for the eurozone as a whole."

"If one country leaves this (monetary) union, the markets will immediately ask which country is next, and that could be the beginning of the end," the former French finance minister told Der Spiegel magazine.

Mr Moscovici's comments come after days of fractious exchanges between Greece and its international creditors.

In the latest round of hostile words from Europe's largest debtor country, Germany's Wolfgang Schaeuble warned Athens' brinkmanship over implementing economic reforms could result in a "Grexident".

"To the extent that Greece is solely responsible and decides what is to happen, and we don't know exactly what Greek leaders are doing, we can't exclude it," said Mr Schaeuble.

The difference in tone from the European Commission and Berlin reflects a schism between Greece's creditors who have been split over the level of demands they wish to extract from the country.

Responding to the German rhetoric, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras urged Europe to show solidarity with his country as it awaits the approval of a vital bail-out extension.

"I believe that there is no Greek problem, there is a European problem."

Relations between the Leftist country and Germany have deteriorated after Mr Tsipras demanded the repayment of Nazi war reparations earlier this week.

Mr Schaeuble has also been the subject of an official complaint from Athens who accused the finance minister of making derogatory comments about his Greek counterpart Yanis Varoufakis.

But there were tentative signs of a thawing between the two sides, with reports suggesting Berlin was willing to stand down over its opposition to Greek plans to issue short-term debt to alleviate its funding crisis.